“If they’d offered part of the ticket money back,” Andy said, “I might have been interested. I had to ask my mom for a loan to cover this trip, and you know how I hate owing her money.” His father had been killed during the South African Conflict in 2014, only a few months after Andy had been born. He’d been raised in a single-parent household, and things hadn’t always been easy. His mom operated her own veterinary clinic in Alexandria, Virginia, and Andy worked there to make extra money.
“I know. This trip put a big dent in my savings. When it comes time for a summer job this year, I’m not going to be able to be choosy about what it is. But with everything going on in L.A., I’d rather be there than here.”
“Yeah. Me, too.” Andy glanced around the crowd as they continued moving slowly forward.
Matt led the way onto the plane, nodding a brief hello to the young flight attendant.
“Where are we?” Andy asked.
Matt peered through the crowd ahead of them. Men and women filled the overhead compartments rapidly. “Row twenty-three, seats D and E.”
Gradually the crowd thinned as people took their seats. Unfortunately, row 23, seats D and E were also occupied.
Matt looked at the two men in the seats, taking in the suits and the external Net hookups. Commercial class received links to the Net during the flight, but it was basically a mechanical access that allowed the users to handle phone calls, e-mail, and fact gathering from databases. Information was relayed over the laptop screens like flatfilm.
“Excuse me,” Matt said politely.
The man on the outside edge looked up, then looked around. “Me?”
“Yes.” Matt nodded. “I think there’s been some mistake. I’m supposed to be in seat twenty-three D.”
“The mistake’s yours, kid,” the businessman said. “This is my seat.”
Andy nudged around Matt. “No. You’ve got
The man looked away and shook his head. “That’s not my problem.”
Shooting the man a withering glare, Andy made a snort of disgust. “Look, my friend and I booked these seats weeks ago. Unless you can ante up and beat that, I suggest you look for another seat to steal.”
“Stand down,” Matt said quietly, in a tone Captain Winters might have used. “Let’s see if we can get this figured out.” He glanced back and caught the young flight attendant’s eye. “We need some help.”
The flight attendant made her way down the aisle. “How can I help you?”
Matt quickly explained about the ticket mix-up. “We’ve really got to make this flight.”
“Tough break,” the businessman. “But what you’re doing can’t be nearly as important as the merger I’m helping negotiate today.”
Looking down at the man, Andy said, “I’ve got a HoloNet flash for you, buddy. If you don’t get out of that seat, the only merger you’re going to be negotiating today is my foot and your—”
Matt started to take a step toward Andy and separate him from the man. Andy didn’t have much patience on a good day, and almost no fear at all of any physical confrontation. He went from class clown to bouncer in a nanosecond.
“Excuse me,” a smooth voice interrupted. “Maybe I can help.”
8
Glancing over his shoulder, Matt watched Leif Anderson stride down the aisle. Leif was dressed in a cream Armani suit that he somehow managed to bring off as casual wear.
“Who’re you?” the businessman demanded.
“Just think of me as a guy helping you out of an unwanted merger.” Leif smiled easily. “These two young men are trying to get into the wrong seats.”
The man grinned in cold triumph and opened his mouth to speak.
“You see,” Leif said, cutting him off, “they’re actually supposed to be in first class. That’s where the really important business goes on.” He looked up at Matt and Andy, then made a sweeping gesture with one arm. “Mr. Hunter, Mr. Moore, if you would be so kind as to join me.”
Matt wrapped a hand around Andy’s upper arm and pulled him along. “First class?” Matt asked.
Leif nodded. “I upgraded your tickets this morning. Evidently you didn’t get my message before you left your house.”
“No. Why would you do that? We could have flown coach.”
“True.” Leif guided them to the first row of seats in the first class section. “But I also upgraded my ticket. I was in the row behind you. Tactical planning on my part since Andy was involved. However, in light of last night’s events I thought we’d be better served by flying first class.”
At Leif’s urging, Matt took the seat nearest the window. He considered, knowing Leif — despite his father’s wealth — wasn’t one to go around flashing money. “So why first class?”
Leif smiled. “Logistics, buddy. Physically we’re miles and hours from Maj, Catie, and Megan, but we can be there virtually.” He tapped the back of the chair. “In coach you get limited access to the Net, but up here the seats are outfitted with implant scanners. Once the plane lifts, we can go online and be at the convention when it opens at ten.”
“I like the way you plan,” Andy said, toasting Leif with his soda.
Matt nodded. “It makes sense, but I’m going to pay you for the first-class upgrade.”
“No need.” Leif put his seatbelt on and snugged it tight as the flight attendant took her place at the front of the first-class section with the oxygen mask demo. “My dad’s picking up the tab. He’s also going to reimburse you guys for your tickets.”
“All right,” Andy crowed enthusiastically.
“Why?” Matt asked.
“Because Anderson Investments Multinational has put together several portfolios for clients that include stocks in game design and development corporations. You just can’t ignore the impact that industry has on the entertainment sector. If something’s rotten there, Dad said he’d feel more comfortable knowing we were looking into it.”
“He could hire a security team.”
Leif nodded. “Sure, and he probably will. But where’s he going to find a security team who knows as much as we do about games?”
Matt nodded. It made sense.
Leif went on. “He’s going to comp Maj. Megan, and Catie as well. That way the team can concentrate on the mystery at hand, rather than money.”
They sat quietly while the jet trundled out to the runway. In minutes they were airborne.
“Okay,” Leif said, leaning the seat back and flipping up the covers over the implant contacts, “time to get virtual.” He placed his head in the trough, closed his eyes, and let out a breath, gone in that very instant.
Andy followed suit immediately.
Matt hesitated. He’d never entered the Net while on a jet streaking through the air.
“Sir?”
Matt glanced up at the young flight attendant.
“Do you have any questions about the use of the on-board equipment?” she asked.
Matt gave her a grin. “So if the jet goes out of control—”
“You’ll automatically be logged off the Net,” the flight attendant replied. “Sensors from the jet are routed through the Net interfaces the airline provides. They’re very sensitive. Sometimes turbulence will cause the connections to log-off. Some passengers think that gets frustrating.”
Matt glanced around the first-class section and found that nearly everyone was logged on to the Net. He pushed his breath out and laid his head back. The brief, familiar sensation of logging on to the Net passed through him.
